Housing having a spring supported closure remover



Aug. 28, 1951 w. s. MENDENHALL 2,565,775

HOUSING HAVING A SPRING SUPPORTED CLOSURE REMOVER Filed April 20, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet l Mim um INVENTOR Memz'm/ml/ BY sgfhcam ATTORNEYS' Aug. 28, 1951 w. SPMENDENHALL HOUSING HAVING A.SPRING SUPPORTED CLOSURE REMOVER 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 20, 1950 o 0 1 lm INVENTORK ill! 7W 9 W {TTORNEYS Patented Aug. 28, 1951 nonsmc HAVING A SPRING SUPPORTED CLOSURE REMOVER William s. Mendenhall, Seattle, Wash. Application April 20, 1950, Serial No. 157,079

9 Claims. 1

The present invention relates to bottle openers for removing the crown type of caps and is a continuation-in-part of my application, Serial No. 58,913, now abandoned.

In the removal of metal bottle caps such as used on beverage containers, usually referred to as crown caps, their successful removal depends upon the accuracy with which the operator, when inserting the neck of the container into the opening device, engages the edge of the crimped lip of the cap with two stationary shoulders, one of which limits the inward placement of the end of Said neck and the other which engages the lip of the cap per se. Often the operator is obliged to make a second or third placement try to effect the proper engagement in order to obtain the necessary contacts so that the cap may be pried loose.

My present invention has for its object to provide a novel form of opener comprising a body in which upon the insertion of the neck of a bottle, or other container, guides it into engagement with a stationary wall forming a fulcrum point and in which a movable extractor simultaneously engages below the rim of the cap to remove it when the operator changes the angular position of the container relatively to said body.

A further object of this invention is to provide a novel way of associating the above-mentioned fulcrum point and movable extractor and furnishing a rectangular slot immediately below the fulcrum point allowing the removed cap to fall therethrough into a waiting receptacle.

To these and other ends my invention comprises further improvements and advantages as will be described in the accompanying specification, the novel features thereof being set forth in the appended claims.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 shows a bottle opener in front elevation constructed in accordance with one form of my invention as mounted on a wall in association with a receptacle for receiving caps upon their removal from a bottle;

Figure 2 is a vertical cross sectional view taken on the center line 2--2 of Fig. 1;

Figure 2a is a front perspective view opener.

Figure 3 is a rear view of the opener;

Figure 4 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view showing the normal position of the sharpened end of the extractor in relation to the beveled edge of the receiving opening in the body of the opener;

Figure 5 is a front elevation of a modified form of the of the invention;

. M locates the front edge I angle to the support on which it is mounted. This integrally with the side Figure 6 is a vertical cross sectional view taken on the center line ;6-6 of Fig. 5;

Figure '7 is a front elevation of the fulcrum wall and its associated movable extractor member;

and

former and both extend forwardly of the rear edge or surface of the body which in the operative position of the instrument lies in a vertical plane and is adapted to engage a wall or other vertical support iii to which it is attached by screws l6 passing through ears or bosses Ill. The difference in the length of the top If! and the bottom I8 of the body at an angle I have determined in practice should be about 20 for best operating purposes. 1

The front edge In of the body is provided with a circular opening it which is slightly greater in diameter than that of a crown cap. .The wall in which the aperture is formed is chamfered or rounded, as indicated at 20, to aid in guiding the insertion of the end of a bottle neclgwith the cap thereon. The lower edge portion of this circular opening forms a, support for the bottle neck around which it revolves whenthe bottle is rotated in the act of separating it from a cap. For illustrative purposes I have shown a bottle neck 2! having a cap 22 of the usual construction provided with the crimpings 23 in its rim or skirt.

Within the body [0 in rear of the front wall I8 is a transversely extending partition 24 formed walls I l-l2. It is spaced inwardly from said front wall a distance slightly in excess of the depth of the rim of a cap at its lower portion, stop with which the lower edge of a cap inserted through the aperture will engage. The upper portion of the wall face slopes inwardly or rearwardly slightly and forms a plain surface 25 against which the flat outer face of a cap may rest thus assuring the operator that the bottle is initially in proper cap removing position. It will be seen that these two positions cooperate to this end, as for instance, if the bottle is not inserted initially with its neck in a straight line as indicated by 25, to form a .Fig. ,3. Rigidly attached by screws 3| with reference to the opening I9 it will nevertheless be arrested inwardly of the body by the wall portion 25 so that the operator knows by the sense of feel that by raising the outer end of the bottle the cap will be properly positioned and again by the feel of the cap as it engages the surface 25 he knows that the cap is positioned to bepried loose.

The space between the proximate faces of the lower edges of the partition 24 and wall I8 is an open slot 21. The partition is also made narrow to provide a space in rear thereof to afford access to the elements by means of which the cap extractor is secured interiorly of the body of the opener.

The partition 24 terminates short of the inner side of the top wall of the body thus providing a space 28 at the rear of which there is a platform 29 countersunk between shoulders 3!), see

to the platform and held also between said shoulders is a leaf spring 32 the forward end of which extends across and normally rests upon the partition 24 and carries a cap extractor 33. The extremity 101 .the latter is hook shaped. It lies adjacent the top of the chamfer 25] of opening 19 and its free end-which is curved inwardly is also chamfered on its outer side, as indicated at 34 in 4, and is parallel to said chamfer on the "circular body opening. This is for the purpose of aiding .in deflecting the spring to allow the .upper edge of a bottle cap to be readily inserted beneath the hook. This chamfer also sharpens the hook to a knife edge on its inner side, as :shown .in the enlarged fragmentary detail view .Fig. 4 and as this edge is also curved on a radius corresponding to the neck of a bottle it will .be seen that as the latter is passed beyond the hook and it springs back into operating position that its sharpened edge very firmly engages in rear of the fluted edge '23 of the bottle cap. The hook portion of the extractor may be made in any desired width and its sharpened edge curved to engage with more or less of half of the circumference of a container neck. However, in practice I have found that the proportions as shown which enables the cap seizing edge to engage two or more of the projecting portions of a cap fiuting functions satisfactorily.

At the time of engagement of the extractor the leaf spring 32 is under tension so that a force is exerted to hold the bottle neck against the lower portion of the opening I 9 of the .body against which it is also held from shifting by the wall 24, so that only a slight downward movement imparted to the outer end of the bottle will cause the cap to be dislodged and permit the'bottle to be withdrawn freely. The extracting member or hook, it will be seen, retains the cap temporarily yet allows it to automatically free itself and pass out of the opener dropping into a receptacle 35 located beneath it.

In'the modified form of the invention, 'as illus trated in Figures through 8, the device is shown as comprising an integral outer shell 48 having a removable insert 4!, positioned therein. This form of the invention has been designed to overcome any objection to the form of the invention disclosed in Figures 1 through 4, due to the fact that it is an integral casting. v

This modified form of the invention has the advantage of being easier and less expensive to construct and since a portion of the device is in the form of a removable insert, the accidental breakage of one part does not necessitate replacement of the whole device. Also the parts may be of lighter material and yet give the required strength necessary in removing bottle caps.

The outer shell 40 has somewhat the same configuration as the outer portion of the preferred form of the device. A pair of parallel side walls 42 and 43 are connected by an arcuate shaped top portion 44 and a horizontal bottom 45. Along the rear edge of the side walls and the top and bottom portions is found a peripheral connecting flange 4B. Thisflange extends completely around the periphery and is provided in its upper and lower surface with an aperture for receiving screws 4! which are adapted to secure the shell to the back board or wall l5. Around the outer periphery of the flange a rim 48 is constructed so that the flange will be spaced from wall l5 allowing a portion of the insert 4| to be clamped therebetween.

The forward extremity of the top and bottom portions 44 and 45, respectively, locates the front edge 49 of the shell. This edge is provided with a circular opening 50 inwardly thereof which is slightly greater in diameter than that of the crown cap. The wall in which the aperture is formed is chamfered, as indicated at 55, to aid in guiding the insertion of the end of the bottle neck with the cap thereon. As will be seen from Figure 6 the bottom 45 is furnished with a rectangular slot .52 which extends substantially from wall 62110 wall 43. This slot provides a means of allowing the cap 22 to fall directly into receptacle 35.

The removableinsert 4 as best seen in Figures 6 through 8, comprises a transversely extending partition 53 which is inclined to the vertical at approximately the same angle as the front edge 49, that is, about 20. When the insert is in the operative position, as shown in Figure 6, partition 53 is spaced inwardly from the front wall of the shell somewhat in excess of the depth of cap 22. The lower portion of Wall 53 has a vertical wall portion 54 integral therewith, the joining of members 53 and 54 forming a stop to prevent further downward movement of the cap.

Below and integral with the lower edge of wall 54 a flange v55 .is formed and is spaced inwardly and substantially parallel with wall 54, the connection between these two latter members forming a shoulder 55. It will be seen that flange 55 is adapted to fit between the lower portion of shell flange 46 and the board i5, shoulder 55 being adapted to abut the corner formed by the bottom -45 and the lower portion of flange 45. A vertical slot 5'! is provided in the central lower portion of flange 55, said slot receiving screw 41 in its operative position. A flange 58, somewhat similar to flange 55, is integrally connected to the upper edge of partition 53 by means of an arcuate spring supporting top member 59, the latter member being inclined to the vertical by an angle of approximately to Both'of flanges 55 and '58 .are adapted to lie'in the same vertical plane. Flange 58 is also furnished with a slot, illustrated by numeral 66, and is adapted to receive screw 41 for securing the completed assembly to wall l5, said flange 58 being positioned between the upper portion of the shell flange and the wall.

Centrally of "the top member 59 and in the upper surface thereof, a groove M is formed, said groove extending from the face of partition 53 to the face of flange .58. Rigidly secured to the top member 59 and fitting within groove 5| -a leaf spring 62 is utilized, the forward end of which extends outwardly beyond partition 53 and carries a hook-shaped cap extractor 63. This hook-shaped portion lies adjacent the top of the chamfer 5! of opening 50 and its free end 64 which is curved inwardly is also charnfered on its outer side, the chamfer being substantially parallel with the plane of circular opening 5! This charnfer performs in the same manner as chamfer 34 on the preferred form of the invention and it is not believed that a description of the operation is necessary. It is to be understood that any convenient means may be used to secure spring 62 to the insert.

It Will be seen that this modified form of the invention may be stamped out with ease and the manufacture of the completed article is quickly and inexpensively constructed.

I claim:

1. An opener for containers having necks sealed by crown caps comprising a hollow body having a front wall provided with an aperture, a chamfered surface on the exterior of the wall leading into said aperture, a stop within the body spaced from the inner surface of the wall a distance in excess of the thickness of the cap, a spring supported extractor having a hook shaped end lying adjacent the inner side of the wall at one side of the aperture serving to force the container neck against the opposite side of the aperture and to engage the edge of the cap thereon.

2. An opener for containers having necks sealed by crown caps comprising a hollow body having a front wall provided with an aperture, an inner partition spaced from the wall forming a stop for a capped container neck, and a spring supported extractor supported within the body adjacent and at one side of said aperture, said extractor being disposed inwardly of the periphery of said aperture so that when the capped container neck is inserted in the aperture to a position in abutment with said partition, the extractor is displaced laterally and to the rear of the cap holding the neck in engagement with the opposite side of the aperture.

3. An opener for containers having necks sealed by crown caps comprising a hollow body having a front wall provided with an aperture, an inner partition spaced from the wall, there being an opening in the body between the bottom of said wall and partition for the escape of said caps, and

a spring supported cap engaging and removing.

member mounted within said body and extending outwardly past said partition, said removing member terminating adjacent the inner face of the front wall.

4. An opener for containers having necks sealed by crown caps comprising a hollow body having a front wall provided with an aperture, an inner partition spaced from the wall having a lower portion parallel to the front wall and an upper portion inclined rearwardly from said wall, a leaf spring extending over the partition and attached to the interior of the body, a hook-shaped cap extractor carried by the spring located adjacent the inner face of the front wall at the top of the aperture therein.

5. An opener for containers in which the neck is closed with a crown cap comprising a hollow body having a front wall provided with a con- 7 tainer neck and cap receiving opening, a stop therein located rearwardly of said opening, and a spring supported cap engaging member connected to said stop, said extractor being disposed adjacent and inwardly of the periphery of said opening and arranged to be displaced outwardly towards the said periphery upon insertion of said crown cap in the opening in abutment with said stop.

6. An opener for containers having necks sealed by crown caps comprising a hollow body having a front wall provided with an aperture, a chamfered surface on the exterior of the wall leading into said aperture, a removable insert mounted within said body having a partition spaced from the periphery of said aperture, a hook-shaped extractor member secured to said insert and normally positioned adjacent to and inwardly of the periphery of said aperture whereby insertion of the crown cap into the aperture in abutment with said partition displaces said extractor laterally, and spring means connected to said extractor resisting said lateral movement.

7. An opener for containers in which the neck is closed with a crown cap comprising a hollow body having a front wall provided with a container neck and cap receiving opening, a stop member therein located rearwardly of said opening, a cap engaging member supported by said body and normally positioned adjacent the periphery of said opening, whereby insertion of said bottle cap into the opening displaces said enga ing member laterally, and spring means urging said engaging member back to its normal position.

8. An opener for containers having necks sealed by crown caps comprising a hollow body having a front wall provided with an aperture, an inner partition spaced from the wall having a substantially vertical lower portion and an upper portion which is substantially parallel with said Wall, a hook-shaped cap extractor connected with said partition, and normally located adjacent the inner face of the front wall at the top of the aperture therein, and means resiliently resisting lateral movement of said extractor.

9. An opener for containers having necks sealed by crown caps comprising a hollow body having a front wall provided with an aperture, a chamfered surface on the exterior of the wall leading into said aperture, a stop within the body spaced from the inner surface of the wall a distance in excess of the thickness of the cap, a spring supported extractor having a hook shaped end lying adjacent the inner side of the wall at one side of the aperture serving to force the container neck against the opposite side of the aperture and to engage the edge of the cap thereon, and a slot in said body below said stop and inwardly of said wall for the escape of said caps.

WILLIAM S. MENDENHALL.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent: 

